The Ugliest Smartphone Awards 2016

In today’s looks-driven society, how a smartphone appears is more important to its sales numbers than ever. Some phones, like the Galaxy S7 Edge and Huawei Honor 8, are absolutely stunning. Others, like the phones in the list below, are designs that have at the least failed to captivate.

3rd Place: LG V20

In third place for the ugliest flagship phone is the LG V20. The device has several seemingly unnecessary material transitions – take a look at the way the design moves from screen to glass to plastic, then to metal on the back. Having fewer build materials, as well as smooth transitions between them, oftentimes makes for a better-looking phone. Maybe next time, LG.

2nd Place: LG G5

The second most ugly flagship crown also belongs to LG. The G5 has a non-symmetrical design on the front, with the bottom chin just below the screen being a colored metal, rather than curved glass as on the top. Another design element that contributes to the device’s negative aesthetic is the enormous camera bump. Not only does the camera pop out the back, but the way the back slopes upward in such a long and drawn out fashion is cringeworthy.

1st Place: Google Pixel and Pixel XL

In first place for the ugliest smartphone of 2016 is Google’s Pixel. We really don’t have to explain much here. The worst offending design element is the horrendous dual-material back. And, of course, the size of the bezels (which appears to serve no outward purpose) already looks outdated, especially compared to phones like the Galaxy S7 Edge and Sony Xperia XA Ultra. Clearly, LG and Google both a have a long way to go in the design department. But if you didn’t find the phones on our list to be all that bad looking, that’s a good thing – it shows that even the worst of smartphone designs aren’t so bad.

Image credit: LG, LG, Google.

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